A round at the Villa d'Este Golf Club

Why it is on the list

Peter Gannon laid out the course in 1926, and it has held the Italian Open twelve times.¹ It is short on paper, par 69 over 5,760 metres, and demanding in play, cut through more than 30,000 old trees above the small Lake Montorfano.¹² At 400 metres it stays cool in high summer.² Villa d'Este owned the club until the late 1970s and bought it back in 2024; the clubhouse looks down over the course and the lake, and La Terrazza al Golf serves lunch and dinner over the 18th green.²

It is the wrong day for anyone who does not play, and on a Tuesday, or in January or February, the course is closed.² For a day on the lake instead, take the private tour of Villa del Balbianello.

How to get it

Book a tee time with the club: its rates page links to online booking, or call the office, open from 8.00 to 19.00, on +39 031 200 200, or write to info@golfvilladeste.com.³⁴ Staying at Villa d'Este, ask Guest Relations instead: nine holes in the morning followed by lunch, nine at sunset with an aperitif and Franciacorta, or a round of 9 or 18 holes with a PGAI professional.¹ Book lunch or dinner at La Terrazza al Golf on +39 031 200140.⁴ The course is open daily from March to December, except on Tuesdays.²

Discretion

The club has its own lodge, set among the first nine holes beside the entrance drive, a few steps from the clubhouse, for a guest who would rather sleep on the course.⁵ Villa d'Este's guests can arrange the whole day through the hotel's Guest Relations team.¹